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Editor: Rod Sullivan
Profession: Maritime Attorney

Category: Cruise Ship Injuries and Accidents

Those who have been in and around ships know that the failure to de-water a ship during fire-fighting is the number one cause of ships sinking after they catch fire. Such appears to be the case in the sinking of the Al-Salaam Boccaccio 98 on February 3, 2006.

As reported by the BBC:

Rani Kamal, the surviving third officer on the ship, told the Arabic news channel al-Arabiya that "the ferry sank because of firefighting operations".

"Water flooded the garage [car deck]... and it pooled on one side. Then the water increased and increased until the ship listed sharply," he said.

According to the UK expert, in the kind of rough weather the al-Salam Boccaccio '98 experienced before it went down it would only take two or three inches (5-8cm) of water on the deck to set off a Free Surface Effect.

The Free Surface Effect is a phenomenon whereby a small amount of water inside the vessel starts slopping from side to side, making the ship rock.